Southern California Sunset is Like a Long Goodbye
by Serena Thorn
Summary: Some days even Elle needed to break. It meant everything to her that Bennet would be the one to put her back together. ONESHOT


Title: Southern California Sunset is Like a Long Goodbye  
Summary: Some days even Elle needed to break. It meant everything to her that Bennet would be the one to put her back together.  
Rating: PG  
Spoilers: 3x02  
Word Count: 1060  
Disclaimer: Heroes is not owned by me, but by Tim Kring. I'm simply borrowing these characters for non-profit entertainment.  
A/N: As much as it pains me to admit this, I have a man named Brad to thank for this fic. Without him the inspiration for this, the visuals, the tone and emotions wouldn't have been nearly as strong. There, Brad, I admit it, you still inspire me. Happy now? :P

* * *

Elle couldn't help but sigh appreciatively as she took a seat on the sandy beach. Being away from Primatech had given her ample time to think about things. How she would live now that father was gone, how she had lost everything she had ever known.

Still, the sun was setting, bathing her surroundings in a bright red glow. It was like a long goodbye as the day began its descent into darkness. She was alone in her little world here, the crashing waves roaring almost loud enough to keep her from hearing her own thoughts. True she had come here to think but given the option to ignore the voice in her troubled mind, she couldn't help but be a little relieved.

Why this beach though she had to wonder. She had never wanted to come back here. This place had only brought her pain. Her former partner had died here. She had been shot. Claire had even threatened her here. Elle could only guess it was to feel closer to the last time she felt she had something worth fighting for.

"I never thought we'd both be back here," a deep, relaxed voice stated from behind her.

Elle only closed her eyes. How had he found her? Why had he even wanted to? Did any of it even really matter now?

"I suppose it's a little harder for either of us to forget then we had thought," he went on as he neared her.

His jeans were the first thing she noticed as he took a seat beside her. Had she ever seen him in jeans before? She couldn't remember. Come to think of it she couldn't seem to remember much from before this week. Not when that was all she could think about.

"Why are you here, Bennet?" she asked, finally looking at him.

"I saw you outside of the house earlier. Waiting in what I hope is your car. I followed you when you finally left. I had a feeling there was something you wanted to talk about and decided you couldn't do it with Sandra and the kids there."

"Since when do you make it easy for me?" she scoffed.

"I know how hard this must be for you -"

"Really?! Angela fired you too? She didn't even bat an eye when your father was murdered by the same psychopath she hails as her long lost son when you and I both know that Sylar is anything but a Petrelli?"

Her lack of need to take a breath during her rants never failed to impress him. Still, Noah replied, "No. But I do know how it feels to lose everything you thought you had known. I know how it feels to be cast aside and not have anyone trust you or want you around. I know what it is to only have one person you can talk to about most things, that's why I followed you here instead of ignoring you."

She sighed. She did have to tell him. Thin air would only listen to her for so long and Bennet really was all she had left. Ironically up until five minutes ago she wasn't sure she even had him. "The truth is I got into my car just to drive. I thought about all the places I could go, all the things I could do. I thought about London, I thought about Hawaii, but in the end I found myself here. Costa Verde was never my home and coming here nearly got me killed more than once already. I watched you die here, I lost so much in a single day and despite that I still came back and I don't have a single idea as to why."

"You want to feel closer to your past, back to a time you felt safe. That day was the day the illusions shattered for you. You saw what I did for Claire and knew your father never did a thing like that for you. When you came to me in that cell looking for answers you realized how cruel he was to you, but he was still your father and you believed he was still worthy of your love so when he was killed it was understandable why you were so distraught. No matter what he did to you he was still all you had known, all you felt you had in the world. But then you didn't sit down and cry, you stayed strong and you came to me, essentially asking me to do what you yourself could have and nearly successfully did on your own. You still needed that sense of protection, to feel that someone still cared enough about you to risk their own life to save yours and avenge your father's murder in the process. I did that and I myself would have succeeded if not for Sylar's little trip to my home just an hour before."

"When was the last time you really watched a sunset?" she asked, changing gears effortlessly.

"I can't remember," Noah admitted, taking her change of subject to mean she was feeling at least a bit better.

"Would you watch this one with me?" He was right, she did still need to feel that someone would be with her when she felt lost. It didn't happen to her often, but Elle really didn't do well alone. Her father had been overbearing to say the least, she had grown used to being smothered. She wasn't ready yet to be so completely alone and if anyone Bennet would know it. He would understand it better than anyone else she knew.

He nodded. "Of course, Elle."

She had been dreaming of this for days and now she knew why as Noah curled a protective arm around her shoulders and let her rest her head against his chest. He understood her like no one else could. He was the only one left who knew what all she had been through and she knew she could feel safe with him because of that. Of course she had ways of protecting herself but just because she could didn't mean that she always liked to have to. Some days even she needed to break. It meant everything to her that once again Bennet would be the one to put her back together.

The End


End file.
